Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Transylvania Romania

2nd largest building in the world in Bucharest

Us at the 'other' Arch D' Triumph

Our arrival in Romania was a bit early and we actually took advantage of it by travelling through Bucharest on a Sunday afternoon and seeing the Palace of Parliament, which was Ceausescu’s Palace until he was strung up by the revolution. Then onto the Arc D’Triumph, a copy of the one in Paris. Actually before we arrived in either spot we crossed Bucharest and both of us saw a lot of similarities to Paris. Obviously Ceausescu’s ego left some nice stuff around town. In fact we are very impressed with Romania. It’s far exceeded our expectations.

Peles Castle

We continued on to Sinaia where Peles Castle is, but a combination of the extra mileage I put on the bad road, the late start, and the traffic on the highway, left us missing a tour of the castle. Actually we had selected Bran Castle as our Romanian castle to tour but we did take in the sites at Peles this morning before moving on.

Clock Tower

Artistry

Sinaia is the Banff of Romania, close to Brasov ,Rasnov and Bran, the home of Count Dracula’s castle (fiction), we found a beautiful pension “Maria” located right in town. A very large room, like very large for $38 a night. And super clean. And we appreciated how much care they took to ensure the moto was safe. We actually took it to their house for the night and he drove me back and forth to the B&B. The BCR bank looked after our exchange of Bulgarian currency to Romanian.

Peles Castle at Sinaia is such a beautiful place with its gardens and Palace that looks a lot like the Chateau at Lake Louise.

Dracula's Castle

BRAN CASTLE

We then headed for Rasnov where we had selected a B&B to stay at. Once located we then headed out for Bran Castle to tour. Bran castle has the legacy of being the home of Bram Stoker’s Count Dracula. You will have to read the information on the picture explanation for full details.

Explanation on Dracula

This castle was home to many different people. Queen Maria, King Ferdinand, The Teutonic Knights, and the Count.

Entrance to Hidden Stairwell

hidden stairwell

My favorite place in the castle was the hidden staircase leading to the study and music room of Queen Maria. It was a very worthwhile castle to stop at.

Exit into Music Room

Music Room

We also visited the fortress at Rasnov on the recommendation of Mike and Ruby. While it was impressive from it’s presence on the hill overlooking the town, it is in very poor shape with many areas under renovation.

A

Order of the Teutonic Knights

Outfit

s we headed out today with rain threatening we weren’t sure how far we’d go but we really enjoyed DN73 from Rasnov to Campulla. This stretch of road through the Carpathian mountains is every bit as scenic as the best of Switzerland. Its such a joy to see people renovating their places, painting, landscaping . Romania really wants to get with it and be the next tourist destination, and it should be.

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Brian

I am a motorcycle and sailing enthusiast who has been riding for over 40 years. I was turned on to motorcycles at the age of 13 when my parents first took me to Europe. Thank God they did!
Ever since that trip I have wanted to return to Europe to ride it by motorcycle. As you will see we didn't stop at 1 trip but we have done many.
I am very fortunate to have married my wife along time ago and we have loved doing this type of travel together.
Remember WE RETIRED, WE DIDN'T DIE!

Why we ride

1. Intimacy with your environment. You are part of the scene, not separated from it by remaining in a car. Your vision is unobstructed.

2. No sensory deprivation. You utilize all your senses as you ride, you can smell the flowers or baking, w/o barriers to see all around you and hear everything. You can smell the rain in the air, hear the kids in the playground, almost taste the pie on the window sill.And its easy to produce the High 5!

3. Physical fitness and endurance. Adventure riding is a sport, and it requires you to stay in shape.

4. You are the Ride. Imagine first that instead of the destination being the goal, the whole ride is an integral part of the experience. Its like riding the roller coaster to and from Disneyland.

5. Gyroscopic leveraging. With 4 wheels the centre of moment moves laterally in the opposite direction to your travel (in essence you are forced away from the direction of travel). On two wheels the gyroscopic centre of moment is used to aid you travelling in harmony with the centre of moment, and aids traction.

5. Camaraderie, motorcyclists of all stripes feel akin-ship to help should a problem exist.

6. Maneuverability. Whether it’s parking or passing you have many more options.

7. Performance. Motorcycles generally have higher power to weight ratios that make them thrilling to drive.